Sotto questions DepEd promotion of Pride Month

Saying pride is a deadly sin, Senate President Vicente Sotto III on Tuesday questioned a memorandum issued by a regional office of the Department of Education (DepEd) that encouraged schools and students to participate in the celebration of Pride Month last June.

Pride Month celebrates lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people and is also used to push for their advocacies, including respect for their rights.

During the interpellation on the DepEd’s 2020 budget late on Tuesday, Sotto said he was informed about a memorandum from the DepEd’s Central Luzon office that called for the inclusion in the school calendar of the observance and celebration of the LGBT Pride Month every June.

‘Confusion’

Sotto said he was concerned this might cause “confusion” in young minds as the memorandum was “quite encouraging.”

He said it was integrated into students’ activities from kindergarten to senior high school and was lumped together with Women’s Month, Breastfeeding Month, Peace Education Month, Children’s Month, 18-Day Campaign to End Violence Against Women, and Human Rights Month.

“These are all very good undertakings, but then Pride Month is inserted. As far as I know, pride is still one of the seven deadly sins,” he said.

“As a matter of fact, in my book that I wrote many years ago—‘Vision for a Drug Free Philippines’—I’ve written it that pride is the head of Satan, and humility is his headache,” he added.

Sotto said he hoped the DepEd would try to avoid this controversial issue.

Sen. Pia Cayetano, sponsor of the DepEd budget, said the department had explained that the division memorandum did not require students and teachers to participate in any LGBT or Pride Month activity, though they would be free to do so if they wished.

“There were no penalties for schools that did not comply, there were no repercussions for schools, students and teachers [who] did not participate. Rest assured that the DepEd and its local offices have not required teachers or students to join any activity, demonstration, or rally pertaining to pride celebration,” Cayetano said, reading from the DepEd’s official response.

No longer in effect

DepEd offices cannot require participation in such activities, she said. “They can participate, there’s that freedom to do so, but they cannot require,” she added.

She also said the memorandum was no longer in effect.